For the modern musician, Facebook groups are very important. Whether it’s finding deps to fill in for last minute drop outs, liaising with promoters or putting a function band together to work on a cruise ship – networking and publicising your existence is crucial.
As such, we’ve put together our top 15 most useful Facebook groups, with a brief description of the group, why it might be useful to you and how many members make it up.
Remember, when applying for work from a Facebook add you should pay attention to how it is worded – do they want you to leave promotional links in the comments or email an EPK?
1. Dep Musicians in the UK, needed or available
- Members: 53.1k
- Group focus: Gig opportunities and deps.
Aimed at musicians and sound/lighting engineers, this group is designed to be reserved for professionals only and therefore strict rules are imposed for all members. The sheer number of member’s means that this group is especially busy, with multiple quality posts every day.
As the title suggests, deps will benefit the most from this but they need to be quick as replies to work come in thick and fast!
2. UK Musicians for gigs
- Members: 40.2k
- Group focus: Jam nights, gig opportunities, band member recruitment/deps, and advice articles.
Full disclosure: this group is run by Last Minute Musicians. But with over 32,000 members, the group is increasing in size and has multiple gig posts per day, both paid and unpaid.
Chris Walmsley from Last Minute Musicians, says:
UK Musicians for Gigs is a great place for musicians to meet and exchange musical opportunities. There are countless examples of bands forming and paid gigs happening in the group, it’s great!
Chris Walmsley
3. UK Music Gear Exchange
- Members: 23.1k
- Group focus: Trade, sale and purchase of musical instruments and equipment.
If you’re looking to buy or sell musical equipment, then you’ll be hard pressed to find a better audience on Facebook than the more than 17,000 members of UK Gear Exchange. Practically every hour people are listing new gear – whether it be guitars, pianos, PA equipment or studio gear. The group is also very effectively policed to avoid spam.
4. ENGLAND IS ALIVE WITH MUSIC
- Members: 19.9k
- Group focus: Promoting, networking, advice articles, available gigs.
EIAWM describes itself as a “platform for self-promotion by England based unsigned talent (musicians and singers)”. If you’re looking to get your latest single heard by lots of people, then this may be a good place to start! Often you can also find posts by radio stations and promoters looking for new bands and music.
Remember, you will be expected to add others to the group if you become a member.
5. Various “Owners Clubs”
- Members: N/A
- Group focus: Discussion, FAQ and Sales.
While this may not be a specific group, Facebook is brilliant at forming communities around particular subjects and one of the best examples of this is the owners clubs that have sprung up surrounding classic musical instruments.
If you have any problems or queries regarding a particularly rare instrument, then these groups can be a great place to start with solving it. Some great examples include Telecaster Group and Martin Guitars Owners & Friends.
You could even find yourself seeing “that” dream guitar for sale!
6. Dep musicians in London
- Members: 22.9k
- Group focus: Deps and permanent work.
Whilst not every musician in the UK lives in the south, belonging to a group such as this will enable those from father afield to dip their toes into a strong music scene to network and take advantage of opportunities.
This group may not be as strong as others, but its numbers are growing. Now is a good time for musicians to join so that they can actively promote their services amongst a small, but dedicated group.
7. Musicians Available UK
- Members: 14.9k
- Group focus: Deps and available gigs, advice articles.
Perhaps we may be slightly bias when it comes to listing this group, but whether or not you have a listing on lastminutemusicians.com, you’re automatically entitled entry to our LMM Musicians Available UK group.
Only Musicians needed and “Deps needed” posts are allowed – the idea is to keep the group as useful as possible. We will also periodically post links to our blogs and advice articles.
Last Minute Musicians’ Content Writer Jon Fellowes says:
The Musicians Available UK group is a great place to network and build up your list of potential deps, while also reading up on general industry advice. It’s a smaller group, which gives it much more of a community feeling and we encourage all members to help each other out wherever possible.
Jon Fellowes
8. Musicians For Cruises
- Members: 11.5k
- Group focus: Securing cruise ship work.
While this group may be small, the admin of Musicians For Cruises are constantly posting new job opportunities for musicians who are looking to start working on cruise ships.
9. Kent musician’s notice board
- Members: 10.4k
- Group focus: Gig offers, items for sale, band member auditions.
Dedicated to serving Kent’s musicians, promoters and their audience, the Kent musician’s notice board slides a little too far on the promotional side but is a great source of musicians and second hand equipment.
The wide range of topics covered in the group does not prevent it from being useful and its 5,100+ members post regularly seeking deps and gig opportunities. A kind community atmosphere also means that almost every post receives interaction.
Admin, Emily Peasgood says:
I aim to provide musicians with the opportunity to network and meet potential band members and music, and to promote their projects. It’s an all-in one hub for musical creativity.
Emily Peasgood
10. North Wales Musical Instruments For Sale/Swap
- Members: 9.7k
- Group focus: Items for sale and trade.
If you are looking to snap up a second hand bargain, this group may well be a good place to start. Prices are generally very good on second-hand gear, and the group is well policed, with fair rules on posting in it.
While there has been a little debate on whether posts should be allowed from outside the north wales area, it would seem posts from all over the UK are allowed as long as you are willing to post.
11. UK Music Teachers
- Members: 16.2k
- Group focus: Sourcing new students, finding new material and networking with other teachers.
The UK Music Teachers Facebook group is specifically dedicated to being a forum for music teachers in the UK to swap ideas and material, as well as find new students. You may also find private music schools posting adds for new teachers.
If you’re looking to get into teaching, you may want to check our our complete guide for music teachers blog!
12. Last Minute Musicians – Members
- Members: 7.4k
- Group focus: Networking, discussion, dep opportunities and “acts needed” posts.
Please note: You will only be allowed to join this Facebook group if you have a listing on www.lastminutemusicians.com.
The LMM Facebook community is a great place for Last Minute Musicians’ acts to swap ideas, discuss different topics and share articles or blogs. You’ll also find posts from bands looking for permanent or temporary members, and other job opportunities… sometimes from LMM admin!
13. The Musician’s Network
- Members: 46.4k
- Group focus: Promotion, reviews, networking and collaboration.
If you’re looking for feedback on your latest release or to find someone to work with on your next one, The Musician’s Network might be a great place to start. Their goal is to create a supportive community for musicians, so be sure to read the guidelines carefully to ensure your post is approved.
14. Session Musicians UK for full-time professionals
- Membership: 2.6k
- Group focus: Sharing work, networking, finding musicians for touring and one-off shows.
While this group might be a little smaller than some of the others on the list, it is strictly policed to ensure only full-time professionals are allowed in, meaning the quality of the work that you might get offered is likely to be high. Similarly, if you are looking to hire a session musician for your band or project, you might have a good chance of success.
15. London Musicians Network
- Membership: 15.9k
- Gruop focus: Finding work, gig promotion, instrument sales.
If you live (or regularly work) in the nation’s capital, then this London-centric group is going to help you narrow down opportunities to those local to you. While the group features posts seeking musicians, you can also use it to promote your own gigs, and sell instruments online.
Do you have any groups that you think should be on this list? Let us know by commenting below!
